Abstract
THE cell walls of a number of Gram-negative bacteria have been shown to contain a mucopeptide component similar in, composition to that which forms a major fraction of the cell walls of Gram-positive bacteria1. We have recently analysed the cell walls of an Escherichia coli mutant 26–26 requiring lysine for growth. A mucopeptide was isolated from cell walls by the procedure described by Mandelstam2 which contained glucosamine, muramic acid, alanine, glutamic acid, diaminopimelic acid, serine, lysine and aspartic acid as major components. An ethanol-insoluble fraction from trichloroacetic acid extracts of cell-wall preparations contained on hydrolysis all the amino-acids found in the mucopeptide and also ribitol, phosphate and glucose. These results suggest that the cell wall of this organism contains the characteristic mucopeptide and in addition a ribitol teichoic acid3.
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References
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CLARKE, P., LILLY, M. A General Structure for Cell Walls of Gram-Negative Bacteria. Nature 195, 516–517 (1962). https://doi.org/10.1038/195516b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/195516b0
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